Confessions of a Libra

For as long as I can remember I have been indecisive. From selecting the perfect college, to the ideal location for our wedding, to now choosing where my daughter will be celebrating her Bat Mitzvah, I am constantly in a state of "Did I make the right decision?" But according to the stars, it is totally not my fault.

You see, I am a Libra and as anyone who shares my sign would know, Libras are always looking to achieve balance in our lives - hence the scale as the icon for the sign.  But in our ultimate quest to have it all, we are constantly second guessing ourselves.  I'm convinced that's why, when I was in high school and took my SAT's, if I had been a Scorpio or a Taurus, I probably would have pulled in a much higher score. I'll never forget going back to those analogies and crossing out my answers only to learn that if I had stuck with my instincts, I probably could have attended Harvard instead of a state school with a really pretty duck pond.

Over the years, I have worked very hard to battle back against my indecisive demons.  Perhaps it's because my husband, who is a Scorpio, goes absolutely bonkers when I change plans on him several times over the course of a weekend.  While we are a 'fly by the seat of our pants' kind of family, I typically make our vacation, restaurant and day trip plans at the last minute - which means I throw out way too many options that completely overwhelm my spouse and my kids.  "Do you want to go to the museum or a nature hike?"  "How about a movie?  Wait, there's a new play that just opened up in our area, maybe we should try that!"  As far as restaurants, thanks to Open Table, I've been able to curb my annoying habit of making reservations at one location, finding out about a better place, canceling the old reservation and then second guessing whether or not I should have just stuck with the original booking in the first place.  I didn't say living with me was easy.

On the bright side of my sign, I am the ultimate perfectionist.  Which means, even though I am weighing whether one option is better than another, in any given situation, what I'm ultimately looking for is providing my family with the best possible experience.  So now that I'm planning my daughter's big day (approximately 365 days and counting), I will painstakingly investigate all the options - from the location to the DJ, flowers, invitations, goodie bags and more, and will turn over every stone in order to find the greatest quality at the best price.  Thankfully, paired with my incredibly head strong Aries daughter, we have already selected a location - a waterfront catering hall with a view of the beach.  If it were up to me, we would have looked at 10 more places but thankfully my 12 year old has no patience for my indecisiveness and made up her mind on the spot.  Aries = Independent.  Yup, that would be my daughter.

As far as other aspects of astrology, I happen to love reading my horoscope and try to do so every day. Today I learned that I should stop kidding myself - it seems that I'm spending above my means and that's just not healthy. Was someone watching me yesterday when I received my brand new Ann Taylor Loft card and treated myself to a mini shopping spree?  It was only a dress and pants and it even came with a coupon!  Besides, I'm worth it!  

The other thing I've heard from people who follow astrology is the whole notion of "Mercury is retrograde" which warns that you shouldn't make any big decisions in your life because communication between people is totally out of whack. My burning question is when do you know that Mercury is out of retrograde?  And what is retrograde anyway?

What I love most about reading horoscopes is when they predict something amazing is about to happen in my life or that I'll be receiving a big package on my doorstep that will make me happy (this past week I received a complimentary pair of New Balance sneakers and the new Oreo Fudge creme cookies to review - which means I can go for a workout after I inhale the new fudge cremes).  For me, astrology is a dip your toe in the water approach that I like to use in lieu of seeing a full-fledged psychic.  Don't get me wrong, I've been known to get my tarot cards read at a party, but the whole notion of meeting a psychic who could potentially predict something bad always scares me away.    

So now it's your turn to share.  Are you a believer like me and are you just like your sign?  I'd love to hear your personal astrology story.  And if you haven't had a chance to check out your horoscope today, head on over to Lifetime's Astrology site.